Canon 1000D versus Sony A6000

The Canon EOS 1000D (called Canon XS in some regions) and the Sony Alpha A6000 are two digital cameras that were announced, respectively,
in June 2008 and February 2014. The 1000D is a DSLR, while the A6000 is a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera. Both cameras are equipped with an APS-C sensor. The Canon has a resolution of 10.1 megapixel, whereas the Sony provides 24 MP. Read on to find out how these two cameras compare with respect to their size, their sensors, their features, and their reception by expert reviewers.

Body comparison: Canon 1000D vs Sony A6000

An illustration of the physical size and weight of the Canon 1000D and the Sony A6000 is provided in the side-by-side display below. The two cameras are presented according to their relative size. Three consecutive perspectives from the front, the top, and the back are available. All size dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter. If you prefer, you can also use the toggle button to switch to a comparison in percentage terms (in this case, the camera on the left – the 1000D – represents 100 percent across all the size and weight measures).

If the front view area (width x height) of the cameras is taken as an aggregate measure of their size,
the Sony A6000 is considerably smaller (35 percent) than the Canon 1000D. Moreover, the A6000 is markedly lighter (31 percent) than the 1000D. In this context, it is worth noting that neither the 1000D nor the A6000 are weather-sealed.

The above size and weight comparisons are to some extent incomplete since they do not consider the interchangeable lenses
that both of these cameras require. Both cameras have similarly sized sensors, but DSLRs have a larger flange-to-focal plane distance than mirrorless cameras,
which imposes contraints on the optical engineering process and generally leads to bigger and heavier lenses.
You can find an overview of optics for the two cameras in the Canon EF Lens Catalog (1000D) and the Sony E-Mount Lens Catalog (A6000). Mirrorless cameras, such as the A6000, have moreover the advantage that they can use many lenses from other systems via adapters, as they have a relatively short flange to focal plane distance.

Concerning battery life, the 1000D gets 500 shots out of its LP-E5 battery,
while the A6000 can take 360 images on a single charge of its NP-FW50 power pack.

The following table provides a synthesis of the main physical specifications of the two cameras and other similar ones. If you want to switch the focus of the display and review another camera pair, just select a new right or left
comparator from among the camera models in the table. Alternatively, you can also move across to the CAM-parator tool and
choose from the broad selection of possible camera comparisons there.

Any camera purchase will naturally be influenced heavily by the price. The manufacturer’s suggested retail prices give an idea on the placement of the camera in the maker’s lineup and the broader market. The 1000D was launched at a somewhat lower price (by 25 percent) than the A6000, which makes it more attractive for photographers on a tight budget. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Sensor comparison: Canon 1000D vs Sony A6000

The size of the imaging sensor is a crucial determinant of image quality. All other things equal, a large sensor will have larger individual pixel-units that offer better low-light sensitivity, wider dynamic range, and richer color-depth than smaller pixels in a sensor of the same technological generation. Further, a large sensor camera will give the photographer additional creative options when using shallow depth-of-field to isolate a subject from its background. On the downside, larger sensors are more costly to manufacture and tend to lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

Both cameras under consideration feature an APS-C sensor, but their sensors
differ slightly in size. The sensor area in the A6000 is 12 percent bigger. As a result of these sensor size differences, the cameras have format factors, respectively, of 1.6 (1000D) and 1.5. Both cameras have a native aspect ratio (sensor width to sensor height) of 3:2.

With 24MP, the A6000 offers a higher
resolution than the 1000D (10.1MP), but the A6000 has smaller individual pixels (pixel pitch of
3.91μm versus 5.71μm for the 1000D). Yet, the A6000 is a much more recent model (by 5 years and 8 months) than the 1000D, and its sensor
will have benefitted from technological advances during this time that enhance the light gathering capacity of its pixel-units.

The A6000 has on-sensor phase detect pixels, which results in relatively fast and reliable autofocus acquisition during video recording.

Consistent information on actual sensor performance is available from DXO Mark for many cameras. This service is based on lab testing and assigns an overall score to each camera sensor, as well as ratings for dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), color depth ("DXO Portrait"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports"). The following table provides an overview of the physical sensor characteristics, as well as the sensor quality measurements for a selection of comparators.

Many modern cameras are not only capable of taking still images, but also of capturing video footage. The A6000 indeed provides for movie recording, while the 1000D does not. The highest resolution format that the A6000 can use is 1080/60p.

Feature comparison: Canon 1000D vs Sony A6000

Beyond body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. For example, the A6000 has an electronic viewfinder (1440k dots), while the 1000D has an optical one.
Both systems have their advantages, with the electronic viewfinder making it possible to project supplementary shooting information
into the framing view, whereas the optical viewfinder offers lag-free viewing and a very clear framing image. The table below summarizes some of the other core capabilities of the Canon 1000D and Sony A6000 in connection with corresponding information for a sample of similar cameras. If you need more detail on the specs, you can find comprehensive listings, for example, in the dpreview camera hub.

More modern: Reflects 5 years and 8 months of technical progress since the 1000D launch.

If the count of individual advantages (bullet points above) is taken as a guide, the A6000 is the clear winner of the contest (14 : 4 points). However, the relative importance of the various individual camera aspects will vary according to personal preferences and needs, so that you might like to apply corresponding weights to the particular features before making a decision on a new camera.

1000D 04:14 A6000

In any case, while the comparison of the spec-sheets of cameras can offer a general idea of their imaging potential, it says nothing about, for example, the handling, responsiveness, and overall imaging quality of the 1000D and the A6000 in practical situations. User reviews that are available, for instance, at amazon can sometimes shed light on these issues, but such feedback is all too often partial, inconsistent, and inaccurate. This is where reviews by experts come in. The following table reports the overall rankings of the cameras as published by some of the major camera review sites (cameralabs, dpreview, ephotozine, imaging-resource, photographyblog). The detailed reviews can be accessed by clicking on the site logo in the table header.

Care should be taken when interpreting the review scores above, though. The ratings were established in reference to similarly priced cameras that were available in the market at the time of the review. A score, therefore, has to be seen in close connection to the price and market introduction time of the camera, and comparing ratings of very distinct cameras or ones that are far apart in terms of their release date have little meaning. Also, please note that some of the review sites have changed their methodology and reporting over time.

Other camera comparisons

Did this review help to inform your camera decision process? If you would like to see a different side-by-side camera review, just make a corresponding selection in the search boxes below. An an alternative, you can also directly jump to any one of the listed comparisons that were previously generated by the CAM-parator tool. If you do not see the camera that you are looking for, please send me an email, and I will try to locate and add the respective data to the application.